Is a single action more accurate then double action???

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VVhiterice

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I kind of feel the in the real world situation it wouldn't matter but is a single action with less moving part and less trigger pull more accurate then a double action.

I guess one could always also #### the hammer in a double action and then fire it to reduce the amount of pull and moving parts.

I don't think any real world experience is necessarily applicable to this question as if there is an accuracy difference it would be so small and one would probably never notice it shooting at the range or the hand gun calibers don't have the range to be affected by this. I am pretty new to this so if any of my perceptions on how guns work are off please do inform.
 
i believe alot of people have compared the two under controlled testing, and the DA is more accurate due to shorter hammer fall when in SA mode.
 
When time is an issue double action can be more accurate than the shot you were about to take with single action.
 
So, you mean, if the human element were taken out of the equation, just the mechanics of the pistol? Would any difference in hammer drop distance have an effect on the bullet's dynamics through the barrel?
 
Yes single action is by far more accurate. Not becacause of a gun but shooter. DA has way heavier trigger pul and ends with dramatic hammer release - quite a bit of a disturbance to shoot accurately. I am talking purely BE target shooting. If you ever to pull the pistol to defend yourself against a grave danger it doesn't matter DA or SA since SA pistols (1911 for example) are carried with hammer cocked. Lot of folks would prefer it cocked even it is DA pistol just to make first shot to go off faster.
 
are you asking single action revolver, or single action semi like a 1911? or double action revolver or double action semi?
 
SAA vs S&W.....someone with a ransom rest want to do some testing
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So you think it means in terms of plain mechanical accuracy, without any human element. I would expect no difference, and the test should be the same gun fired single action and double action, not two different firearms designs IMO. When you add in a human shooter, not locked in a rest, then the much greater trigger weight required to fire the gun in double action has a negative effect on accuracy.
 
I think a few posters are confusing which gun is easier to shoot accurately with which gun is more accurate. In a revolver it matters not whether the gun is SA or DA. What does matter is how each chamber lines up with the bore, how uniform each chamber throat is to the next and how well the throat diameter matches the diameter of the bullet, and how gently the forcing cone accepts the bullet's entry into the barrel. The truer the cylinder turns on the base pin effects the straightness of the round and the bore, as does the precision with which the crane closes against the frame of a DA. The weight and speed of the hammer drop are of no consequence to intrinsic accuracy, but like a good vs a bad trigger can be quite important to practical accuracy.
 
It doesn't matter. As long as the sights are aligned when the gun fires.
In other words, a good shooter will be a good shot with either, and a bad shooter will be a bad shot with either.
 
i believe that it is easier to be accurate with a single action but both can be as accurate as the other. depends on the shooter and quality of guns compared
 
22lr said:
SA pistols (1911 for example) are carried with hammer cocked. Lot of folks would prefer it cocked even it is DA pistol just to make first shot to go off faster.
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I read an article indicating that US army troops in the field are required to carry in Condition 3, no round in the chamber and hammer down, for safety reasons.

Apparently they have some special forces troops that are allowed to carry in Condition 1 (cocked and locked with safety on)
 
The mechanical aspect of firing a DA vs SA should have no difference on accuracy. When the shooter gets involved the amount of torque/force used to squeeze the trigger may have the effect of misaligning the sights from the shooters's pre-shot sight picture. This can be felt more obviously when the trigger is jerked. This can be overcome be practicing trigger squeeze and follow through for each SA and DA. I like SA(semi) because you can immediately fire from the trigger reset where as DA usually requires the complete release of all tension on the trigger for the follow up shot. Train well on both be good on both.
 
No difference from a mechanical point of view. Humans, as always, screw things up once they're involved. At that point, SA is easier to trip the trigger without excessive gun movement, so the nod goes that way. There are multiple variations on this (SA/DA in the same revolver, a SA revolver vs a DA revolver, SA semi vs DA semi), but as generalizations go, it works pretty well. - dan
 
its not like I walk around with a round chambered at the range anyway, perhaps if you are a LEO it makes a difference, shooting paper, all the DA's essentially act like a SA (for semi-autos)
 
Contondant said:
I read an article indicating that US army troops in the field are required to carry in Condition 3, no round in the chamber and hammer down, for safety reasons.

Apparently they have some special forces troops that are allowed to carry in Condition 1 (cocked and locked with safety on)
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i'd like to see that source, if you have it- your sidearm is ALWAYS condition 1 unless you're at the rear- and it makes sense b/c if your primary goes mechanical for whatever reason, you TRANSITION to the sidearm automatically until you can get out of the situation and get the primary fixed- now that applied to the 1911, and it's right in the manual
"the m1911a1 shall be carried AT ALL TIMESwith a round in the chamber and the HAMMER in the FULLY COCKED position, with the SAFETY applied- it then goes on about how to draw from the m7 holster, etc
condition 3 makes no sense on the battlefield
 
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